Veteran Iowa Republicans seek state GOP makeover

ASSOCIATED PRESS

October 25, 2013 12:01 AM

This photo taken Monday, Oct. 21, 2013 shows Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad, left, accompanied by Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds, speaking during his weekly news conference at the Statehouse in Des Moines, Iowa. Fed up and ready to get off the sidelines, veteran Iowa Republicans are working to wrest control of the state GOP from the evangelicals, tea partyers and libertarians they blame for alienating longtime party loyalists. Led by Branstad, these Republicans want to grow the state party _ one that ideological crusaders have shaped over the past few years _ by bringing back into the fold pragmatic-minded voters while attracting more women and younger voters. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)AP

ASSOCIATED PRESS

October 25, 2013 12:01 AM

DES MOINES, Iowa -- Fed up and ready to get off the sidelines, veteran Iowa Republicans are working to wrest control of the state GOP from the evangelicals, tea partyers and libertarians they blame for alienating longtime party loyalists.

Led by Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad, these Republicans want to grow the state party -- one that ideological crusaders have shaped over the past few years -- by bringing back into the fold pragmatic-minded voters while attracting more women and younger voters.

These Republicans say success would be Branstad winning re-election next fall and paving the way for a national GOP comeback in the 2016 presidential election by choosing a mainstream Republican in the leadoff presidential caucuses.

"What we need is someone who knows how to get things done, accomplish things," Branstad told the Associated Press recently. "My goal is to strengthen the party and to try to encourage people, new people, to participate and to show that I think the future for the party can be bright if we are welcoming -- and if we really work."

The power struggle shaping up here has begun playing out across the nation. Some national Republican luminaries are blaming tea party figures like Texas Sen. Ted Cruz for demanding ideological purity, inciting the partial government shutdown and damaging perceptions of the party across the country.

In Iowa, it took the party two months to sell all the tickets to its annual fall fundraiser featuring Cruz, who led the failed effort to defund President Barack Obama's health-care law. The event usually sells out quickly, and Branstad allies point to the sluggish pace as evidence that local GOP leaders are unhappy -- and ready for a change.

"It's really unfortunate that a small few who are loud are trying to speak for the grass roots," said Tamara Scott, a Republican national committeewoman and outspoken Christian conservative who speaks highly of Cruz.

Branstad's allies hope to drive disaffected Republicans back into the party's grass roots, starting with the midterm caucuses in January where party activists will choose delegates who will decide the GOP's direction heading into 2016.

"If the establishment wants to take over, they have to show up," said Doug Gross, a longtime Branstad adviser. "And frankly we haven't."